With her customary charm, Stevens offers a version of this Aesop's fable that modernizes the tale while preserving the spirit of the original. ""One day, the town mouse went to visit her cousin in the country. She swished through the door and flung herself down on the couch. `What a tiring trip. I'm exhausted and hungry. Where's lunch?' she said.'' Indeed, the city mouse, who is bedecked in jewels, looks positively peaked as she sprawls uncomfortably on her cousin's rustic couch. After he makes a trip to his cousin's city home he concludes, ``It's better to have beans and bacon in peace than cakes and pie in fear.'' Ages 38. (April